Dedicated to the Business of Contemporary Live Music
Well, not quite yet. But the shockwaves from Channel 4’s Dispatches: The Great Ticket Scandal in 2012 were the catalyst for industry figures to join campaigning Labour MP Sharon Hodgson, featured in the programme, to oppose industrial-scale and insider secondary ticketing, with the past few weeks and months witnessing a…
Read morePROMOTER AEG Presents has partnered with the organisers of Birmingham’s 12,000-capacity MADE Festival to launch a new two-day indoor event. MADE For The Weekend will be held at the city’s Genting Arena (15,594) on 12-13 October. “The MADE team have built a great event with a strong following and we’re…
Read moreCONVENTION and music festival Sound City has appointed Rebecca Ayres as it’s new MD, taking over the role from founder Dave Pichilingi. Ayres, who has worked for the event since it began in 2008 and was made chief operating officer in 2012, while Pichilingi will focus more on records, publishing…
Read moreAEG PRESENTS has promoted Simon Jones to the newly created position of senior vice-president (VP) of live music international. Jones, who was previously VP of AEG’s Goldenvoice division, will be responsible for expanding the company’s international touring activities, working with its offices in the US, Europe, Asia and the Middle…
Read moreTHE FIRST panellists have been announced for the 12TH annual LIVE UK Summit, to be held on Thursday 11 October in London’s West End. Focussing on the venues sector, the Supply & Demand panel will feature NEC Group MD of Arenas Phil Mead and VMS Live founder Steve Forster, while…
Read moreTHE ASSOCIATION of Independent Festivals (AIF) has again called on the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to investigate what it sees as the Live Nation Entertainment (LNE) domination of the UK festival market. AIF has published a festival ownership map suggests that LNE owns or majority owns more than 25…
Read morePROMOTER GLASSWERK has added the 1,150-capacity Grand Central Hall in Liverpool to the portfolio of venues it programmes. The Art Deco-style hall reopened in May following a major renovation, which now sees it include a food bazaar, two bars, and a hotel. “I went to look at the refurb and…
Read moreTHE FOLLOW-up to last year’s inaugural Event Safety & Security Summit (E3S) will feature more than twice as many topics and presentations, say organisers. Taking place on 30 October at the Congress Centre in London, E3S will feature more than 25 speakers, including deputy assistant commissioner of the Metropolitan Police…
Read moreNORTH LONDON’S 10,000-capacity Alexandra Palace has agreed a partnership with virtual reality platform MelodyVR to film shows at the venue. As part of the deal, MelodyVR will live stream real-time concerts via VR (virtual reality) and offer virtual tickets to sold-out shows, enabling an unlimited number of fans from around…
Read moreLONDON’S 1,250-capacity The Grand in Clapham Junction is working to increase the number of concerts it stages, after securing secret warm-up shows with Snow Patrol and George Ezra in recent weeks. The South London venue has invested in sound and light upgrades. “We have dramatically improved the tech team, sound…
Read moreTHE INAUGURAL concert at Hull’s new £40 million, 3,500-capacity Bonus Arena was by Van Morrison and general manager Dan Harris promises to bring many more major artistes to the city. The latest addition to SMG Europe venue portfolio, which includes Manchester Arena (21,000) and Newcastle’s Metro Radio Arena (11,000), the…
Read moreACADEMY MUSIC Group (AMG) has signed a long-term lease to operate Manchester’s 3,500-capacity Victoria Warehouse. As part of the deal with the venue’s owner James Cohen, it has been rebranded O2 Victoria Warehouse, in line with AMG’s sponsorship agreement with telecoms giant O2, which was signed in 2009. AMG will…
Read moreCONTROVERSIAL RESALE website Viagogo has snubbed MPs for a second time, after failing to attend a Digital Culture Media and Sport (DCMS) Select Committee hearing into ticketing on 5 September. In a letter to committee chair Damian Collins late the night before, Viagogo cited a potential conflict between Competition &…
Read moreISLINGTON AND Hackney councils have sent submissions to the Haringey Licensing Authority calling for a review of Live Nation Entertainment (LNE) licence to stage the annual Wireless festival (cap. 49,000) in North London’s Finsbury Park. Residents group Friends of Finsbury Park, which also called for a review, have been campaigning…
Read moreAS REPORTED in sister publication Audience last month, and in a move that has taken many by surprise, Ticketmaster (TM) has announced it is closing its Seatwave and GetMeIn resale sites. The news comes within weeks of parent company Live Nation Entertainment reporting a 29 per cent leap in revenue…
Read moreA CROWD-funding initiative has raised more than £2,700 toward a music trade press advertising campaign highlighting the gender imbalance in nominations for live sector awards. Although LIVE UK has been told the adverts will not specifically name the Live Music Business Awards (LMBAs), it is understood the latter was the…
Read moreTHE DECADES-long on-off process behind Bristol getting an arena took another radical turn as LIVE UK went to press. A week earlier, the city’s Labour Mayor Marvin Rees announced his decision to scrap well-advanced plans to build a council-funded, 12,000-seat facility on Arena Island in the city centre, in favour…
Read moreIn a move that has taken many in the industry by surprise, Ticketmaster (TM) UK has announcement it is closing its Seatwave and GetMeIn (GMI) resale sites. The news comes within weeks of parent company Live Nation Entertainment reporting a 29 per cent leap in revenue from worldwide secondary ticketing…
Read moreTHE OWNER of East London’s Village Underground (cap, 400) in Shoreditch, Auro Foxcroft, says his new 1,200-capacity venue, Hackney Arts Centre (HAC) will open in September. Built in 1936, the former art deco-style Savoy Cinema in Dalston, which had been derelict for 40 years, has been refurbished in a £3…
Read morePAUL MCCARTNEY has performed a surprise concert at Liverpool’s Cavern Club (cap. 350) – the venue synonymous with launching the career of the former Beatle and his bandmates. Tickets for the 27 July show were given out free on a first-come first-served basis from Liverpool’s Echo Arena box office, after…
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